TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (8) TMI 1625
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.... during the relevant period, the appellant imported consignments declared as "Mixed Lot of Polyester Knitted Fabrics" of Chinese origin from overseas suppliers, namely, M/s. Dauer International Ltd., U.K. and M/s. LCL Group Co. Ltd., H.K. The appellant filed six (06) Bills of Entry for clearance of the aforesaid imported goods, having a cumulative assessable value of Rs.2,17,57,575.51/-, by classifying the goods under Customs Tariff Item No. 6006 9000 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 and simultaneously claiming the benefit of concessional Basic Customs Duty at the rate of 10% under Serial No. 169 of Notification No. 82/2017-Customs dated 27.10.2017. On the basis of such self-assessment, Customs duty amounting to Rs.36,00,879/- was discharged and the goods covered under the said Bills of Entry were cleared for home consumption. The details of the impugned Bills of Entry are provided in the table given below: - Sl. No. Bill of Entry No. Bill of Entry Date COO Supplier Declared Item Description Assessable Value (in Rs.) 1 8229928 27.09.2018 CN Dauer International Ltd., U.K. Mixed lot of Polyester Knitted Fabric (Rolls of Asso....
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....o 6004 6006 Other knitted or crocheted fabrics 5. According to the Department, the tariff structure under Heading 6006, classifies goods on the basis of their constituent material, namely wool or fine animal hair, cotton, synthetic fibres, artificial fibres and "other", as reproduced below: - 6006: Other Knitted or Crocheted Fabrics HS Code Level Item description Unit Effective BCD (N82/2017) 6006 10 00 - Of wool or fine animal hair Kg. 10% - Of cotton: 6006 21 00 -- Unbleached or bleached Kg. 10% 6006 22 00 -- Dyed Kg. 10% 6006 23 00 -- Of yarns of different colours Kg. 10% 6006 24 00 -- Printed Kg. 10% - Of Synthetic fibres: 6006 31 00 -- Unbleached or bleached Kg. 20% 6006 32 00 -- Dyed Kg. 20% 6006 33 00 -- Of yarns of different colours Kg. 20% 6006 34 00 -- Printed Kg. 20% - Of artificial fibres: 6006 41 00 -- Unbleached or bleached Kg. 20% 6006 42 00 -- Dyed Kg. ....
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....ty amounting to Rs.25,13,000/- together with applicable interest and imposition of penalty under Section 114A of the Customs Act, 1962. 7.1. The above Notice was adjudicated vide the Order-in-Original No. KOL/CUS/JC/PORT/15/ SIB/2021 dated 27.04.2021, whereby the adjudicating authority confirmed the differential duty demand of Rs.25,13,000/- along with applicable interest, by rejecting the classification claimed by the appellant under Customs Tariff Item No. 6006 9000 and reclassifying the imported goods under Customs Tariff Item No 6006 3200 and denying the benefit of Notification No. 82/2017-Customs dated 27.10.2017 (Sl. No. 169) as claimed by the appellant. The ld. adjudicating authority also imposed a penalty equal to the differential duty demanded above, under Section 114A of the Customs Act, 1962. 7.2. The appellant thereafter preferred an appeal before the Commissioner of Customs (Appeals), Kolkata, who, vide the impugned Order-in-Appeal No. KOL/CUS(PORT)/KS/295/2023 dated 28.04.2023, upheld the findings recorded in the Order-in-Original dated 27.04.2021 and rejected the appeal. 7.3. Aggrieved thereby, the present appeal has been filed before this Tribunal. 8. Du....
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.... that contemporaneous assessment is an important piece of evidence. If Revenue departs from uniform practice, it must explain why. Otherwise, classification becomes arbitrary. (V) Assessment Already Completed: (i) The Proper Officer examined assessed, enhanced value and accepted classification. Later, without any fresh evidence classification has been changed. This itself shows change of opinion rather than discovery of new evidence. (ii) The decisions of reopening where the assessment has got finality are beyond the capacity of Law where there is no new material. (VI) No Evidence Produced by Revenue (i) The Revenue has failed to produce Test report, Technical literature, Textile Committee opinion, Expert witness, Chemical Examiner's report, Market enquiry, Manufacturer's specification, Fibre composition, Yarn composition, GSM analysis etc. Therefore, there is absolutely no evidence. (ii) Denial merely because Revenue believes that another heading should apply without any positive proof or evidence which is illegal. 8.1. In view of the above submissions, the Ld. Counsel for the appellant contends that the goods in que....
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.... find it necessary to note that at the time of assessment of the Bills of Entry, the appellant had declared the goods therein as "Mixed Lot of Polyester Knitted Fabric (Rolls of Assorted Colours & Weight)" and had claimed classification under Customs Tariff Heading 6006 9000. The said Bills of Entry were duly assessed by the proper officer under the declared classification and the goods were thereafter cleared. Significantly, the original assessment so made was not challenged by the Department at the relevant time. It is trite that once the Proper Officer has assessed the Bill(s) of Entry and allowing the classification claimed therein, the same cannot be departed from merely on the basis of a subsequent change of opinion, without establishing any mala fides or wilful suppression on the part of the importer. Thus, the original assessment assumes significance in the peculiar facts of the present case. 13.1. In this connection, it may be noted that at the stage of assessment, the Customs authorities had at their disposal the Bills of Entry, invoices and other contemporaneous import documents, and had the requisite statutory powers to examine the goods, verify the declarations and,....
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....Entry constitutes a separate assessment and the classification of the goods covered thereunder must necessarily be determined with reference to the goods actually imported under that particular Bill of Entry and the evidence available in relation thereto. A classification cannot be sustained merely by drawing an assumption from the broad description of the goods or in respect of earlier imports made, particularly when the goods are admittedly described as a mixed lot and their precise composition has not been established by any technical or laboratory evidence. 15. In the factual backdrop obtaining herein, we are of the opinion that the Department, having accepted the declared classification at the stage of original assessment and having failed to undertake any testing or otherwise produce definitive evidence demonstrating that the imported goods were of such composition as to merit classification under Customs Tariff Item No. 6006 3200, could not subsequently displace the original classification merely on the basis of a different perception regarding the appropriate tariff entry. The requirement is not merely to merely adopt a different classification, but to establish, by coge....